Democratic Decentralization

Joint Forest Management focuses on empowerment of forest dwelling communities both socially and economically. The present study attempts to analyse the government policies, programmes and legal provisions regarding JFM with emphasis on empowerment in the Madhya Pradesh context.

One of the major thrusts of the empowerment is capacity development. The efforts made by the Forest Department in capacity development are not yet able to yield the desired results in the field. However, there has been a basic shift towards empowerment and a large number of people, at least feel, that they are politically, socially and personally empowered after being involved in JFM. The translation of the empowerment into actual practice is going to be a major challenge for the sustainability of the JFM in the future.

Agriculture become the major source of livelihood for the majority of the forest-dwelling communities in India. Traditional livelihoods such as hunting and gathering, fishing, and shifting cultivation have come down due to shrinking forest coverage and reservation for commercial purposes in the name of scientific forestry. Most of the forest dwellers are displaced for the cause of mining, big dams, and other multi-purpose developmental projects. It made them to depend on agriculture to a great extent. However, the lack of irrigation facilities, modern farming methods, low technology, and undulating landholdings led to low yields for Janajati and hence they rely on forests for alternative livelihood. Thus, forests play an important role not only in employment but the supply of timber and non-timber forest produce for domestic use, nutritional supplements, medicinal herbs, etc. Due to its significance, Janajati communities maintain a symbiotic relationship with their surrounding forest ecology and conserve them through the worship of sacred groves. Collection of seasonal fruits, Bamboo, Mahuwa, and Tendu leaves are initiated only after appeasing the presiding deities in the form of first fruit ceremonies. However the entry of commercialization and commodification of forests led to its ruthless exploitation and forced forest dwellers to migrate to urban centers for wage labor. More than fifteen policies were made during colonial and post-colonial people that curtailed the rights of forest dwellers in many ways. However, the recently made amendment to the Forest Conservation Act 1980 is detrimental to the interests of these forest dwellers by putting forest lands to non-forest uses for economic gains. With this backdrop, the present paper highlights the traditional management of Dhurwa for its tutelage in policy formulation. The study found that traditional management of forest resources has resorted to an adaptive strategy in difficult times. The present study is a micro-level one that employed traditional anthropological methods i.e., observation, key informant interviews, group discussions, and questionnaires to collect empirical data

India followed a parliamentary democracy system at the central and state levels, with bureaucratic governance at the lower levels. The 73’rd and 74’th Constitutional Amendment Act of 1993 brought a drastic change in power and position of bureaucracy at lower levels of administration in India. The empowerment of people at grass-roots levels is considered to be one of the most important tenets of the modern democratic administrative system. It provides much scope for the all-round development of society, thereby facilitating effective participation and empowerment of the people. People’s planning in Kerala as a measure of democratic decentralization attempts to introduce effective change in the role of bureaucracy and rural political leadership in the democratic direction.

India followed a parliamentary democracy system at the central and state levels, with bureaucratic governance at the lower levels. The 73’rd and 74’th Constitutional Amendment Act of 1993 brought a drastic change in power and position of bureaucracy at lower levels of administration in India. The empowerment of people at grass-roots levels is considered to be one of the most important tenets of the modern democratic administrative system. It provides much scope for the all-round development of society, thereby facilitating effective participation and empowerment of the people. People’s planning in Kerala as a measure of democratic decentralization attempts to introduce effective change in the role of bureaucracy and rural political leadership in the democratic direction.

Increased out-migration from rural areas indicates a significant socio-demographic shift that is increasingly being studied for its impact on community-based forestry institutions. Previous studies in Nepal, Mexico and India have highlighted changes in community-based forestry institutions through increased participation of women following out-migration of men. Therefore, this paper analyses the participation of women in Van Panchayats in a representative sample of six Van Panchayats from Almora district, which is facing one of the highest rates of out-migration in Kumaon region of India. The analysis suggests there is low participation of women in the leadership positions of Van Panchayats despite landmark legislations to increase women's participation. Further, there was no statistically significant difference between participation of women from migrant versus non-migrant households in general assembly meetings of Van Panchayats, suggesting lack of supporting evidence on previous claims about out-migration leading to increased participation of women. Moreover, the position of women in the household (whether household head or not) was significant in explaining their participation in Van Panchayats, and other community-based institutions. The reported findings are relevant to the design of gender inclusive public policy on Van Panchayats as well as to the literature on impact of out-migration on community-based forestry.

Focusing on people oriented forest policy initiatives, this paper intends to understand whether and to what extent these initiatives can address the social vulnerability of forest communities in Bangladesh. This paper found that despite the potential of community forest management, the community based policy initiatives in Bangladesh fail to address the dynamic relationships among the formal and informal institutions that largely shape the rights and access of forest communities to forest resources. These policies ignored the social construction process that generated inequality and marginalisation in gaining access to forest resources. This paper argues that various forms of institutional arrangements and their relationships are of central importance in determining which social actors gain access to and control over their local natural resources. This, in turn, contributes to the forest communities' limited ability to ensure their livelihoods, their basic needs and their capacity to cope with adverse events such as climate induced hazards.

Increased out-migration from rural areas indicates a significant socio-demographic shift that is increasingly being studied for its impact on community-based forestry institutions. Previous studies in Nepal, Mexico and India have highlighted changes in community-based forestry institutions through increased participation of women following out-migration of men. Therefore, this paper analyses the participation of women in Van Panchayats in a representative sample of six Van Panchayats from Almora district, which is facing one of the highest rates of out-migration in Kumaon region of India. The analysis suggests there is low participation of women in the leadership positions of Van Panchayats despite landmark legislations to increase women's participation. Further, there was no statistically significant difference between participation of women from migrant versus non-migrant households in general assembly meetings of Van Panchayats, suggesting lack of supporting evidence on previous claims about out-migration leading to increased participation of women. Moreover, the position of women in the household (whether household head or not) was significant in explaining their participation in Van Panchayats, and other community-based institutions. The reported findings are relevant to the design of gender inclusive public policy on Van Panchayats as well as to the literature on impact of out-migration on community-based forestry.

This comprehensive paper presents a conceptual framework for rural development within India's participatory democratic decentralized system. It highlights the crucial interplay between decentralization, participatory democracy, and local development, emphasizing the empowerment of grassroots communities. Drawing on principles of democratic governance, the paper advocates for the delegation of authority to local representatives, fostering transparency, accountability, and efficient service delivery. The authors systematically explore the benefits of decentralization, such as enhanced local government effectiveness and greater public participation, offering valuable insights into the potential of decentralized governance in promoting healthy development. The paper underscores the significance of prioritizing rural development in India, acknowledging the unique challenges faced by the rural population and advocating for a self-reliant and participatory approach.

Increased out-migration from rural areas indicates a significant socio-demographic shift that is increasingly being studied for its impact on community-based forestry institutions. Previous studies in Nepal, Mexico and India have highlighted changes in community-based forestry institutions through increased participation of women following out-migration of men. Therefore, this paper analyses the participation of women in Van Panchayats in a representative sample of six Van Panchayats from Almora district, which is facing one of the highest rates of out-migration in Kumaon region of India. The analysis suggests there is low participation of women in the leadership positions of Van Panchayats despite landmark legislations to increase women's participation. Further, there was no statistically significant difference between participation of women from migrant versus non-migrant households in general assembly meetings of Van Panchayats, suggesting lack of supporting evidence on previous claims about out-migration leading to increased participation of women. Moreover, the position of women in the household (whether household head or not) was significant in explaining their participation in Van Panchayats, and other community-based institutions. The reported findings are relevant to the design of gender inclusive public policy on Van Panchayats as well as to the literature on impact of out-migration on community-based forestry.

The objective of this study was to assess the perceptions of Forest Department (FD) staff and local people regarding the implementation of Joint Forest Management (JFM). The study involved an investigation of 110 people from 14 village forest committees falling under seven forest divisions of two forest circles Hoshangabad and Jabalpur of Madhya Pradesh State of India. Both FD staff and local people indicated a trend towards developing positive perceptions towards each other and a significant improvement in the inter relationship between the two was found. Both sides perceived that JFM has instilled a participatory approach in the functioning of the FD and committees to some extent. However, both also consider that JFM is yet to be institutionalised and joint efforts on their part are essential to make it sustainable for use in the future.

The purpose of this study was to assess the perceptions of forest officers/staff and local people about different dimensions of Joint Forest Management (JFM) and to assess the constraints to JFM as perceived by people and forest personnel of India. The study conducted a comprehensive investigation of 110 people from 14 village forest committees falling under seven forest divisions of two forest circles, Hoshangabad and Jabalpur of Madhya Pradesh State of India. Both forest officers and local people indicated a trend towards developing positive perceptions of each other and a significant improvement in the interrelationship between the two was found. Both groups perceive that JFM has encouraged a participatory approach in the functioning of forest department and committees to some extent. JFM has also improved the conditions of forests and is attempting to contribute towards village development and improving the socioeconomic condition of the villagers. In this regard the Divisional Forest Officers and rangers are supposed to play the most crucial role in the success of JFM, as seen by local people. However, villagers' expectations of immediate benefits from JFM, their poverty, illiteracy and ignorance, the limited role of women, limited motivation of people and forest officers and caste conflicts were considered as major constraints to the effective implementation of JFM.

The objective of this study was to assess the perceptions of Forest Department (FD) staff and local people regarding the implementation of Joint Forest Management (JFM). The study involved an investigation of 110 people from 14 village forest committees falling under seven forest divisions of two forest circles Hoshangabad and Jabalpur of Madhya Pradesh State of India. Both FD staff and local people indicated a trend towards developing positive perceptions towards each other and a significant improvement in the inter relationship between the two was found. Both sides perceived that JFM has instilled a participatory approach in the functioning of the FD and committees to some extent. However, both also consider that JFM is yet to be institutionalised and joint efforts on their part are essential to make it sustainable for use in the future.

Participatory approach in forest management emerged as most preferred policy option in most of the developing countries. Participation of communities in forest management has been perceived as panacea for reduction of poverty in forest based economies. In this backdrop, robust reform process by making community a centre for forest management programmes was initiated in India. After two decades of inception, community based forest management could not achieve envisaged results. This situation necessitated for serious revamp of existing policy formulations. In this context, a comparative analysis of community forest management (CFM) in colonial and post-colonial India is useful to trace the micro and macro level dynamics of the policy process. By examining CFM in colonial and post colonial Andhra Pradesh (AP), this paper proposes that community cantered forest management in India had strong colonial legacy consequent upon which the policy initiatives could not delivered expected results.

This paper presents the results of research conducted between 2009 and 2014 in the village of Khanda Sharol in the state of Rajasthan, India. Our research objective was to determine how the livelihoods of village residents have been affected by the intensification of forest use, and the resulting loss of domestic access to traditionally used forest resources. Results indicate that changes in forest cover have resulted in a loss of livelihood options for village residents. Yet rather than being victimized by environmental change processes, this paper shows how villagers have responded by partnering with public and private actors to develop a community protected forest area that is now helping villagers to meet their livelihood needs. These findings suggest that sustainable livelihoods in rural regions of India require committed and scaled approaches involving local, public, and private actors.

Myriad scholars, policymakers, and practitioners advocate tree planting as a climate mitigation strategy and to support local livelihoods. But, is the broad appeal of tree planting supported by evidence? We report estimated impacts from decades of tree planting in Northern India. We find that tree plantings have not, on average, increased the proportion of dense forest cover, and have modestly shifted species composition away from the broadleaf varieties valued by local people. Supplementary analysis from household livelihood surveys show that, in contrast to narratives of forest dependent people being supported by tree planting, there are few direct users of these plantations and their dependence is low. We conclude that decades of expensive tree planting programs have not proved effective.

Ecosystem services research has highlighted the importance of ecosystems for human well-being. Most of the research, however, focuses only on aggregate human well-being and disregards distributional and equity issues associated with ecosystem services. We review approaches from institutional economics, political ecology and the social sciences in order to develop an analytical framework to understand the distribution of benefits from ecosystems across different socio-cultural groups and the underlying social processes involved. We then present a case study of the distribution of provisioning ecosystem services in a forest-fringe village in Odisha, India. Our analysis shows the unequal distribution of ecosystem services and complex social processes that determine these. We identify the determining factors and processes to include: differential resource-specific needs, different cultural identities, differentiated social status and bargaining power, exclusionary and inclusionary social practices, differential access. Our analysis proves therefore that aggregation of forest ecosystem benefits obscures crucially important patterns of distribution, and the underlying social processes that determine these. This also demonstrates the necessity of applying social science frameworks in such analyses. Our study also shows that most ecosystem services are co-produced through both ecosystem processes and social actions, and so their assessment cannot be separated from the social context in which they are embedded. In conclusion we recommend that ecosystem services research engages more with process-oriented, context-specific and integrated approaches, based on a recognition of the complexity of social-ecological realities.

Restoring landscapes can bring economic, environmental, and social prosperity to people and the planet. In the Sidhi District of India’s Madhya Pradesh state, the opportunity is massive. By adapting the popular Restoration Opportunities Assessment Methodology (ROAM) to measure ecosystem services, livelihood benefits, land tenure, gender, and social inclusion and by mapping the social landscape, we uncovered that diverse potential.

The analysis and policy recommendations of this Paper do not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations, its Executive Board or its Member States Sub-Group on Sex Disaggregated Data of the IAWG on Gender and Development UNDP, 55, Lodi Estate, New Delhi 110003, India Website http://hdrc.undp.org.in UNESCO House B-5/29, Safdarjung Enclave New Delhi 110 029, India Website http://unescodelhi.nic.in e-mail newdelhi@unesco.org

This paper aims to explore self-initiatives in local resource management. Based on two village case studies, it suggests that the willingness of ‘rational’ individuals in a community to design their own institutions of collective action is based on the exigencies of their daily subsistence existence and the complex pattern of reciprocity built into their lifestyle over a lifetime of cohabitation. It limits itself to emphasizing possibilities of indigenous institutions and makes a case for recognizing them which otherwise are largely ignored under external development interventions.

The local user communities are responsible for the control, protection and management of the forests. Joint forest management advocates strong community participation, bottom up planning and sustainable use of forest resources. Women are also the active users and members of most of the community forests. There are about 560 women user groups in state. Thus, women are providing an important role in sustainable development of community forests. However, their role is neither properly identified nor explored. This paper explores and analyzes women's role in development and conservation of forest for its sustainable development. It also highlights the constraints on maximum female participation in community forestry and focuses on possible ways for solving the problems faced by women in community forestry. Present study had been conducted in four villages of central Chhattisgarh. Out of these villages two villages which belong to Raigarh District are having good forest cover and rem...

Agroforestry is a land use system in which, the woody perennials are integrated with the crops/animals components on a same land management unit (Nair, 1979). In the Garhwal Himalayan regions, it is very common for people to practice the agroforestry system as the farmers cultivate various crops, trees and rear livestock on the same unit of land. Most of the villages of Tehri Garhwal are at the fringe of the forest areas so the presence of trees on farmers field and dependence of villagers on these trees has became a common practice. Most of the trees present on farmers field and nearby areas are International Journal of Current Microbiology and Applied Sciences ISSN: 2319-7706 Volume 9 Number 10 (2020) Journal homepage: http://www.ijcmas.com

The local user communities are responsible for the control, protection and management of the forests. Joint forest management advocates strong community participation, bottom up planning and sustainable use of forest resources. Women are also the active users and members of most of the community forests. There are about 560 women user groups in state. Thus, women are providing an important role in sustainable development of community forests. However, their role is neither properly identified nor explored. This paper explores and analyzes women's role in development and conservation of forest for its sustainable development. It also highlights the constraints on maximum female participation in community forestry and focuses on possible ways for solving the problems faced by women in community forestry. Present study had been conducted in four villages of central Chhattisgarh. Out of these villages two villages which belong to Raigarh District are having good forest cover and remaining two villages have less than 5% forest cover belong to Janjgeer District. To formulate a systematic approach for studying about women's participation an elaborate exercise was taken for data collection. For the purpose socio economic survey of the villagers was conducted. A pre designed question ire along with PRA, RRA methods were used for primary data collection.

Local people must be at the center of restoring landscapes. This paper adapts the popular Restoration Opportunity Assessment Methodology (ROAM), which helps show where land can be restored in a given area by growing trees or protecting forests, to the economically poor yet resource-rich Sidhi District of Madhya Pradesh in India. By employing an intersectional adaptive governance lens and including the perspectives of people and organizations throughout the larger social landscape, we analyzed the multiple benefits landscape restoration can have on ecosystem services, social inclusion, the economy, and local livelihoods. These participatory methods and tools draw attention to the critical socioeconomic components of restoration. The findings indicate that different social groups, like powerful men and marginalized women, have different restoration goals (even for tree species selection). They also show that investing in restoration can create thousands of jobs and secure thousands of rural livelihoods. Analyses that produce these socioeconomic insights can inform implementation strategies that are both inclusive and actionable on the ground. They can also identify roadblocks, like unclear land tenure and resource rights, which can impede restoration. Most importantly, these inclusive strategies can ensure that local people serve as more than passive beneficiaries. They place them in their appropriate role as the central stakeholders driving implementation.

Local people must be at the center of restoring landscapes. This paper adapts the popular Restoration Opportunity Assessment Methodology (ROAM), which helps show where land can be restored in a given area by growing trees or protecting forests, to the economically poor yet resource-rich Sidhi District of Madhya Pradesh in India. By employing an intersectional adaptive governance lens and including the perspectives of people and organizations throughout the larger social landscape, we analyzed the multiple benefits landscape restoration can have on ecosystem services, social inclusion, the economy, and local livelihoods. These participatory methods and tools draw attention to the critical socioeconomic components of restoration. The findings indicate that different social groups, like powerful men and marginalized women, have different restoration goals (even for tree species selection). They also show that investing in restoration can create thousands of jobs and secure thousands of rural livelihoods. Analyses that produce these socioeconomic insights can inform implementation strategies that are both inclusive and actionable on the ground. They can also identify roadblocks, like unclear land tenure and resource rights, which can impede restoration. Most importantly, these inclusive strategies can ensure that local people serve as more than passive beneficiaries. They place them in their appropriate role as the central stakeholders driving implementation.

Local people must be at the center of restoring landscapes. This paper adapts the popular Restoration Opportunity Assessment Methodology (ROAM), which helps show where land can be restored in a given area by growing trees or protecting forests, to the economically poor yet resource-rich Sidhi District of Madhya Pradesh in India. By employing an intersectional adaptive governance lens and including the perspectives of people and organizations throughout the larger social landscape, we analyzed the multiple benefits landscape restoration can have on ecosystem services, social inclusion, the economy, and local livelihoods. These participatory methods and tools draw attention to the critical socioeconomic components of restoration. The findings indicate that different social groups, like powerful men and marginalized women, have different restoration goals (even for tree species selection). They also show that investing in restoration can create thousands of jobs and secure thousands of rural livelihoods. Analyses that produce these socioeconomic insights can inform implementation strategies that are both inclusive and actionable on the ground. They can also identify roadblocks, like unclear land tenure and resource rights, which can impede restoration. Most importantly, these inclusive strategies can ensure that local people serve as more than passive beneficiaries. They place them in their appropriate role as the central stakeholders driving implementation.

Restoring landscapes can bring economic, environmental, and social prosperity to people and the planet. In the Sidhi District of India’s Madhya Pradesh state, the opportunity is massive. By adapting the popular Restoration Opportunities Assessment Methodology (ROAM) to measure ecosystem services, livelihood benefits, land tenure, gender, and social inclusion and by mapping the social landscape, we uncovered that diverse potential.

This article suggests that local elites play an instrumental roleeither with positive or negative consequences-in shaping struggles for power over processes and outcomes of participatory forest management interventions, when implemented in communities characterized by social hierarchies. We show how the contrasting outcomes of joint forest management in two case study villages cannot be attributed to institutional reform, but appear to be caused largely by differences in the role assumed by local elites. The evidence indicates that institutional reform itself does not guarantee changes in the actual management of natural resources. Rather, vested interests at the local level and among State actors may continue to shape events while working within or beyond the new institutional landscape. On the basis of the results of our case studies, the article poses the hypothesis that a network theory of social capital could be a useful way of analyzing such diverse outcomes of similar institutional reforms implemented in relatively similar communities. We conclude by arguing that attempts at institutional reform at the level of the community in hierarchical societies should proceed with modest expectations, 708 Kulbhushan Balooni et al. and an eye for the incentives facing local elites and the implementing and facilitating State actors.

Almost all programmes in forestry are implemented by the Forest Department. All senior positions in this Department are manned by officers belonging to the Indian Forest Service (IFS). Yet no systematic study has been undertaken which would analyse the strengths and weaknesses of the IFS. In the past the evaluation studies in the forestry sector have concentrated on looking at the physical side of afforestation - how many trees planted and where - but have generally ignored analysing the administrative structures and procedures, which are so essential for long term and sustainable translation of policies into action. This report seeks to fill this lacuna.

More than 2,000 years ago, in what is today Nepal, King Mandev gave the local people living in and around Changu Narayan forest the responsibility of managing the forest, in exchange for which they would enjoy the right to harvest timber once a year. The king and his nobles, however, could harvest forest products the whole year round. And the king could, of course, take away at any time the peoples right to harvest anything from the forest. Because the king had sovereign control over the forest and its resources, the people had no recourse other than to accept the responsibility of management in return for limited use rights. The issues of environmental justice in the context of rural life have not changed appreciably in two millennia. Fast forward to Bhopal, 1984, the site of one of the worlds most devastating industrial disasters, that has come to be a classic case study for environmental justice in the urban context, which emphasises rights to an environment safe from pollutants, hazardous waste and other toxins. Bhopal is the capital of Madhya Pradesh, the Indian state in which two of the sites for this study are located. Although the issues involved in environmental justice in the rural, natural resource context have not changed much in 2,000 years, the concept of environmental justice itself has evolved rapidly over the past quarter century. As the introduction to this volume explains, the idea of environmental justice emerged from the access to justice movement as an urban-based concept of rights to a safe, healthy, productive and sustainable environment without regard to race, ethnicity or socioeconomic status. It includes the mechanisms that enable individuals or groups to create, claim and exercise rights, encompassing issues such as procedural and social equity as guarantees for equal treatment, and protection for minority racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic groups, despite the often inequitable power relationships in society at large. The growing literature and other available resources on environmental justice continue to reflect the Northern/Western development of the urban/pollution focus on environmental justice. In both the United States and the United Kingdom, theory and practice continue to emphasise the links between toxic wastes and other hazardous substances as well as race-based discrimination in making decisions on where and how such substances are stored, used and disposed of. In the US, there is also a strong connection with public health. 2 Second-generation environmental justice issues include climate change, particularly the distribution of its impacts. 3 Moving beyond the focus on rights to unpolluted air and water in urban areas, the environmental justice movement has also begun to examine issues of how pollution affects land. 4 Non-governmental organisations have begun to include natural resource issues in their environmental justice programmes as well. 5 These initiatives deal with matters xiv such as habitat loss, wildlife trade and illegal fishing, all of which are mainstream conservation concerns. To date, however, no systematic examination of environmental justice and injustice as experienced by rural people, who depend on natural resources for subsistence or to supplement their livelihoods, has been identified. A recent study of livelihood security in four South Asian countries, among them India and Nepal, demonstrates that the problem of environment and security in South Asia is an issue of institutions and governance. In some cases, failures are the result of deliberate choices on the part of the state, for example, the non-recognition of customary resource rights. In other instances, the failures are the result of well-intentioned but poorly implemented attempts to remedy inequities in resource rights regimes. In still others, they result from the reluctance of the state to relinquish control over resources and the revenues they generate, including state connivance in undermining its own statutory regime. 6 Environmental justice in the rural context thus develops as an issue of rights, institutions and governance, and as an essential component of livelihood security, which is one of the first steps on the path leading out of poverty. In the rural context, environmental justice also includes the urban idea of rights to an environment safe from pollutants, hazardous waste and other toxins. More fundamentally, environmental justice for rural people and their communities has as much to do with whether they have and are able to exercise rights to own, access and use the natural resources on which their livelihoods depend, as it does with the quality of the resources themselves. South Asia is still in the process of defining environmental justice for its own context. Although there are provisions related to political, social and environmental justice in the constitutions of India and Nepal, these principles have not been translated into government action to a degree sufficient to ensure environmental justice in either country. A South Asian conference held in 2002 concluded that any definition of environmental justice for the region must include provisions for ensuring access to resources and for compensation if that access is denied, and that those provisions must be guaranteed by law. 7 The project whose results are the subject of this volume was originally conceived in 2003. The questions it sought to answer were: Can environmental justice be defined in the rural and natural resource context in South Asia? Is the concept relevant to rural people and their communities? The results of this study, undertaken in two South Asian countries, India and Nepal, indicate that the answer is yes to both questions. The objective was to test the feasibility of expanding the scope of environmental justice, from its focus on the impact of pollution on disadvantaged urban populations, to encompass rural communities and the natural resources on which they depend. The study examined the obstacles that selected rural communities, and individuals within them, face in accessing environmental justice. It sought to identify opportunities that are available to communities through existing systems and institutions, and to identify strategies for empowering communities to influence their governments to make the transition to devolving effective command over natural resources to the local level. xv In the long term, the goal of this initiative is to see the natural resource context accepted and integrated into the concept of environmental justice at the global, regional and national level, and for it to be used to improve rural livelihood security at the community level. Conceptual Basis For the Study The foundation for the conceptual basis of this study was research carried out by the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) of the University of London in 19941996 to examine the concept of environmental justice in five cities in Asia and two in Africa. The comprehensive results of that study were published as this volume went to press; 8 the summary released in 1997 9 was used as the reference for the work discussed here. 10 The SOAS study relied on entitlements theory. Environmental entitlements refer to the alternative sets of benefits derived from environmental goods and services over which people have legitimate effective command and which are instrumental in achieving well-being. 11 Different people within the same community may rely on entitlements from different components of the environment. 12 Endowments are understood to be the assetsphysical, social and knowledge/skills-relatedan individual or group uses to secure entitlements. Entitlement mapping refers to processes and institutions that affect how individuals and communities can apply their endowments to secure their entitlements. An environmental entitlements failure occurs when endowments are insufficient and/or entitlement mapping is unfavourable. 13 Described in entitlement terminology, environmental justice is achieved when individuals and communities can use entitlement mapping not only defensively, to prevent environmental entitlement failure, but also proactively to secure livelihood. The SOAS study noted that theories of access to justice and environmental entitlements had not evaluated legal options as fully as the economic ones, and proceeded to examine the legal options in the urban context. It set out to compare the extent to which urban citizens can and do exercise their rights to a safe and sustainable environment through the differing legal systems of their home countries. Two of the Asian cities in the SOAS study are in South Asia Bangalore and Karachi. The study made no prior assumptions as to how people would define environmental justice in each city. The guiding principle was whether any actors in the system regarded a situation relating to their urban environment as unjust, or as a potential claim against the state. The SOAS project identified six gateways or options people have to exercise and defend their rights to a better, more sustainable urban environment. The study did not equate access to environmental justice exclusively with access to the law, and sought to compare legal gateways with other, informal ways to seek justice. Formal gateways included actual legal remedies, defensive use of the legal system and administrative review. Informal gateways included alternative dispute resolution and extra-legal self-help remedies. While most civic groups and activists who took part in the SOAS study were ready to identify xvi environmental problems and their causes, they were hesitant to turn their grievances into actual legal claims. The study found that where litigation was used, the law appeared in practice to benefit economically advantaged groups. Economically disadvantaged groups lacked the financial resources and familiarity with the legal system to be able to use these gateways effectively. The SOAS...

Myriad scholars, policymakers, and practitioners advocate tree planting as a climate mitigation strategy and to support local livelihoods. But, is the broad appeal of tree planting supported by evidence? We report estimated impacts from decades of tree planting in Northern India. We find that tree plantings have not, on average, increased the proportion of dense forest cover, and have modestly shifted species composition away from the broadleaf varieties valued by local people. Supplementary analysis from household livelihood surveys show that, in contrast to narratives of forest dependent people being supported by tree planting, there are few direct users of these plantations and their dependence is low. We conclude that decades of expensive tree planting programs have not proved effective.

Introduction This article presents two personal histories from the Garhwal Himalayas (Uttaranchal Pradesh). The protagonists originate from villages located in two different districts of Garhwal, and the stories mirror the different social and political contexts in which each person is situated and within which each life has developed. The stories vary according to the circumstances and genre in which they are presented. The first is a personal narrative told to the anthropologist, and the second is a song about Gaura Devi, the famous Chipko fighter, written and occasionally performed by a local poet.

Political ecology Cultural identity a b s t r a c t Ecosystem services research has highlighted the importance of ecosystems for human well-being. Most of the research, however, focuses only on aggregate human well-being and disregards distributional and equity issues associated with ecosystem services. We review approaches from institutional economics, political ecology and the social sciences in order to develop an analytical framework to understand the distribution of benefits from ecosystems across different socio-cultural groups and the underlying social processes involved. We then present a case study of the distribution of provisioning ecosystem services in a forest-fringe village in Odisha, India. Our analysis shows the unequal distribution of ecosystem services and complex social processes that determine these. We identify the determining factors and processes to include: differential resource-specific needs, different cultural identities, differentiated social status and b...

Reducing deforestation and degradation (REDD+) under the rubric of payment for ecosystem services (PES) is being promoted as the most cost-effective mechanism for reducing global greenhouse gas emissions. This process of commodifying forest services will redefine the rhetoric of decentralised forest governance that has evolved in developing countries over the last two decades. This thesis uses ethnographic case studies in two forest villages in West Bengal state in India, along with 294 household surveys and 76 interviews, to examine the impending changes in socioeconomic and political arenas with the adoption of a market mechanism like REDD+. I undertook a pilot study for one month in October 2009, which was followed by my main field work in two phases: February to July 2010 and November 2010 to February 2011. First, the analysis of livelihood dependence of forests dwellers shows unequal extraction of forest products by various wealth classes under the current socioeconomic and political structures of village societies. Rich and medium class families with their higher assets were higher net users of forests, while poor households had a critical dependence on forests for their daily survival. Second, I examine the impact of livelihood dependence on forests. A majority of key informants did not see the current extraction of forest products, for example, for meeting local subsistence and commercial needs as major detriments to forest and carbon conservation. However, I argue that a number of legal provisions and official guidelines could potentially impose restrictions on the ongoing forest use pattern as a result of REDD+. Third, by comparing the functioning of the village council (with a special focus on the implementation of India's National Employment Guarantee Scheme) with forest protection committees, I reflect upon the limitations in the decentralised forest management that emerge from the institutional design of the programme. I show that the decentralised forest governance suffers from lack of accountability and transparency over the control of forests by the Forest Department. Finally, this thesis suggests that the institutional design for REDD+ at the national level needs to be based on the democratic partnership of local institutions and the state.. 12 Declaration I, Sumana Datta, declare that no portion of the work referred to in the thesis has been submitted in support of an application for another degree or qualification of this or any other university or other institute of learning.

Development Introduction New approaches to poverty eradication have sought to bring the poor themselves to centre stage, acknowledging and supporting their own capacity to articulate their needs. It is in this context of a renewed commitment by governments, aid agencies and NGOs that this paper re-examines certain features of Sustainable Livelihoods (SL) analysis. To achieve sustainable livelihoods is a developmental objective. SL is also an analytical framework that provides a way of understanding the factors influencing people’s ability to enhance their livelihoods. It is also an approach to poverty eradication which pursues the developmental objective by combining the analytical framework with several core principles, e.g. that development support should be peoplecentred, participatory and dynamic. The focus in this paper is on SL as an analytical framework, and particularly on the treatment of power and polit ics, which are widely thought to have been underrepresented in the fra...

Reducing deforestation and degradation (REDD+) under the rubric of payment for ecosystem services (PES) is being promoted as the most cost-effective mechanism for reducing global greenhouse gas emissions. This process of commodifying forest services will redefine the rhetoric of decentralised forest governance that has evolved in developing countries over the last two decades. This thesis uses ethnographic case studies in two forest villages in West Bengal state in India, along with 294 household surveys and 76 interviews, to examine the impending changes in socioeconomic and political arenas with the adoption of a market mechanism like REDD+. I undertook a pilot study for one month in October 2009, which was followed by my main field work in two phases: February to July 2010 and November 2010 to February 2011. First, the analysis of livelihood dependence of forests dwellers shows unequal extraction of forest products by various wealth classes under the current socioeconomic and political structures of village societies. Rich and medium class families with their higher assets were higher net users of forests, while poor households had a critical dependence on forests for their daily survival. Second, I examine the impact of livelihood dependence on forests. A majority of key informants did not see the current extraction of forest products, for example, for meeting local subsistence and commercial needs as major detriments to forest and carbon conservation. However, I argue that a number of legal provisions and official guidelines could potentially impose restrictions on the ongoing forest use pattern as a result of REDD+. Third, by comparing the functioning of the village council (with a special focus on the implementation of India's National Employment Guarantee Scheme) with forest protection committees, I reflect upon the limitations in the decentralised forest management that emerge from the institutional design of the programme. I show that the decentralised forest governance suffers from lack of accountability and transparency over the control of forests by the Forest Department. Finally, this thesis suggests that the institutional design for REDD+ at the national level needs to be based on the democratic partnership of local institutions and the state.. 12 Declaration I, Sumana Datta, declare that no portion of the work referred to in the thesis has been submitted in support of an application for another degree or qualification of this or any other university or other institute of learning.

A major strategy to combat deforestation caused by household fuel collection has been the establishment of plantations, especially in India. A household model is speci® ed with a number of collection possibilities and analyzed empirically using household, vegetation, and GIS data, and the potential decrease in collection from the natural forest is estimated. The results show reduced pressure on the natural forest due to the establishment of plantations. It also questions buffer zone plantations very close to natural forests.